An important resource for students, engineers and researchers working in the area of thin film deposition using physical vapor deposition (e.g. sputtering) for semiconductor, liquid crystal displays, high density recording media and photovoltaic device (e.g. thin film solar cell) manufacturing. This book also reviews microelectronics industry topics such as history of inventions and technology trends, recent developments in sputtering technologies, manufacturing steps that require sputtering of thin films, the properties of thin films and the role of sputtering target performance on overall productivity of various processes. Two unique chapters of this book deal with productivity and troubleshooting issues. The content of the book has been divided into two sections: (a) the first section (Chapter 1 to Chapter 3) has been prepared for the readers from a range of disciplines (e.g. electrical, chemical, chemistry, physics) trying to get an insight into use of sputtered films in various devices (e.g. semiconductor, display, photovoltaic, data storage), basic of sputtering and performance of sputtering target in relation to productivity, and (b) the second section (Chapter 4 to Chapter 8) has been prepared for readers who already have background knowledge of sputter deposition of thin films, materials science principles and interested in the details of sputtering target manufacturing methods, sputtering behavior and thin film properties specific to semiconductor, liquid crystal display, photovoltaic and magnetic data storage applications. In Chapters 5 to 8, a general structure has been used, i.e. a description of the applications of sputtered thin films, sputtering target manufacturing methods (including flow charts), sputtering behavior of targets (e.g. current - voltage relationship, deposition rate) and thin film properties (e.g. microstructure, stresses, electrical properties, in-film particles). While discussing these topics, attempts have been made to include examples from the actual commercial processes to highlight the increased complexity of the commercial processes with the growth of advanced technologies. In addition to personnel working in industry setting, university researchers with advanced knowledge of sputtering would also find discussion of such topics (e.g. attributes of target design, chamber design, target microstructure, sputter surface characteristics, various troubleshooting issues) useful. . - Unique coverage of sputtering target manufacturing methods in the light of semiconductor, displays, data storage and photovoltaic industry requirements - Practical information on technology trends, role of sputtering and major OEMs - Discussion on properties of a wide variety of thin films which include silicides, conductors, diffusion barriers, transparent conducting oxides, magnetic films etc. - Practical case-studies on target performance and troubleshooting - Essential technological information for students, engineers and scientists working in the semiconductor, display, data storage and photovoltaic industry

Contains papers presented as part of the 1991 Spring Meeting of the Materials Research Society.

Nanofabrication of magnetic media with large magnetocrystalline anisotropy has become a very important topic as technological demands continue to increase. These demands include ever rising requirements of areal density in magnetic storage media such as hard disk drives (HDD), as well as searches for rare-earth-free permanent magnets to meet future clean energy technology. Certain L10-ordered materials, a chemically ordered, face-centered tetragonal structure, possess highly desirable magnetic properties which have been the focus of intense research over the past decade. These magnetic properties include a large magnetic anisotropy, a moderate Curie temperature, and a large saturation magnetization. On the other hand, these materials suffer from significant drawbacks in the deployment for technological applications, particularly due to the difficulty in realizing the L10 phase. Understanding the physical interactions in prototype technological systems utilizing L10 materials and quantifying their limitations is key to formulating a research and development path forward. As such, this line of research attempts to address important scientific and technological challenges in such high anisotropy materials. In future HDD technology granular L10-ordered materials are promising media candidates that can achieve even higher areal densities. This is of prime importance because the thermal stability of magnetic bits is compromised as each bit becomes even smaller. One method to combat this is the use of a magnetic material with a very high magnetocrystalline anisotropy, which, in turn, increases the necessary switching field. Creating a thermally stable magnetic grain that can be recorded under a finite write field will be accomplished with the emerging heat-assisted magnetic recording technology. While much work has been done on L10-ordered magnetic media, there is still great deal to be studied in using them as potential HAMR media. In this thesis, a comprehensive set of high temperature magnetic studies, as well as structural characterizations, were carried out on high anisotropy FePt and FeNi alloys in the L10 phase. The first order reversal curve (FORC) technique is applied extensively to identify reversal mechanisms and distinguish different phases within the material, and quantify their behavior and interactions. The effects of segregant combinations in laminated FePt-based granular media were investigated. These structures can be tailored by the additional co-sputtering of segregants alongside magnetic material in various layering schemes to tune properties such as chemical ordering, magnetic anisotropy, grain morphology, magnetic switching fields and switching field distributions, and thermal stability. Magnetic media were grown with three distinct segregant profiles: a single media with spherical grains, dual layer media with columnar grains, and triple layer media with Voronoi grains. FORC analysis shows that increasing the number of layers with alternating segregant composition not only improves the grain shape geometry, but also better retains the L10 ordering throughout the heating cycle. Continuing the study of granular FePt-based media, layered stacks of FePt media were exposed to varying amounts of light-ion irradiation using helium. L10-ordered media suffers from the high temperatures required to reach a high degree of chemical ordering. Three films were created using a FePt-(C,BN) dual layer system, and two were exposed to light-ion irradiation at varying annealing temperatures to promote greater chemical ordering with increased atomic mobility. An increase in chemical ordering was found after annealing at 500 °C, vs. a decrease found after annealing at 400 °C, compared to an unirradiated sample. The coercivity distribution, peak coercivity, and hard L10 phase fraction were found to be enhanced after irradiation and annealing at 500 °C. Finally, rapid thermal annealing with extreme speeds was employed to induce L10 ordering in FeNi thin films. Magnetic properties were examined using the FORC technique, and structural characterizations were done with transmission electron microscopy and electron diffraction. After rapid thermal annealing the samples exhibit almost two-orders of magnitude increase in coercivity, along with the appearance of forbidden electron diffraction peaks, confirming the realization of L10 ordered high anisotropy FeNi. These results demonstrate an effective route to achieve high anisotropy rare-earth-free magnets using earth-abundant elements.

Materials Research in thin and ultrathin magnetic structures is a multidisciplinary field which heavily relies on state-of-the-art growth, characterization and theoretical approaches to build a comprehensive physical picture on how magnetic properties depend on interfacial structural issues, interlayer coupling and transport phenomena. Often in this field, the critical properties and characterization required necessitates knowledge of structural and magnetic phenomena extending over several atomic planes. Atomic controlled growth techniques are required and atomic sensitivity is needed from magnetic and structural probes. This critical knowledge is vital for device applications, providing the basis for the synergistic interactions that are predominant in this field of research. This volume is the definitive reference source for anyone interested in the latest advances and results of current experimental research in ultrathin film magnetism.